Hog feeder



June 25, 1929. w. A. MccoLLouGH 1.718.472

HOG FEEDER Filed latch 17, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ggf/ Y 3 y 32 7 o y "L7 e L 31 4o /Be 39 37 22 23 113 32 37 37 35 34 l l fo uf 53 3l 34 47 g 45 51 y l *I7 50 53 46 4L 56 57'/ .1A-'255 [454 Y 5V 55 '/57 -f-/7 562-/ /3 "5L /ff /8 I /5 J gmc/M June 25, 1929. w.AA. MccoLLouGH HOG .FEEDER Filed March 17, 1927 Z-SheetS-Sheet 2 dttomuj Patented June 25, 1929.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM A. MCCOLLOUGH, OF WEBSTER CITY, IOWA.

HOG FEEDER.

Application filed March 17, 1927. Serial No. 176,069.

The primary object of this invention is to provide an improved construction for a feeding device for automatically supplying feed to domestic animals, particularly hogs.

A further object of this invention is to provide a feeding device having a plurality of feeding doors which may be separately lifted by the animals for feeding purposes and which may be lifted conjunctively by manual operation and held in raised position at times for the purpose of cleaning the feed trough.

A further object is to provide improved means for hinging the doors to the frame.

Still another object of the invention isto provide improved rotary agitating devices for causing the feed to be discharged fromk the hopper to the troughs.

A further object is to provide an improved removable metallic liner for the troughs.

More specifically, a further object of the invention is to provide a device of the class described which is of economical and substantial constructionhaving its base portion composed principally of wood and thev superposed hopper composed principally of sheet metal and so arranged as to provide a watershed at the base of the hopper' and discharging upon inclined doors which normally close the feeding troughs.

Writh these and other objects in View my invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in the claims and indicated by the accompanying drawing in. which- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the complete device showing one of the feeding doors in open position and portions of other doors broken away. Y

Fig. 2 is a cross-section on an enlarged scale on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and showing the doors `on one side held in open position as for cleaning purposes. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on an enlarged scale on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, showing a portion of the device.

Fig. 4 isa perspective view of one of the feeding doors detached.

5 is a perspective view of one of the rotary agitators detached.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one form` of hinge clip.

Fig..7 is a. perspective View of a modified r form of hinge clip which may be employed.

. The feeder is composed in a generalway of a base portion which is formed principally of wood and a bin or hopper composed principally of sheet metal, superposed on the base, and in this instance the base is provided with feeding troughs on both sides of the hopper. In the construction of the device as shown, I employ spaced base barslO, 11 and 12, in this instance three in number, which are designed to rest on a ioor or on the surface of the ground. Three sills 13, 14 and 15 are arranged on and fixed to the cross-bars 10, 11 and 12, the central sill 13 being arranged on edge while the side sills 14 and 15 lie fiat on the opposite end' portions of the bars. Side boards 16 and 17 are mounted on and fixed to the cross-bars just outside of the sills 14 and 15. boards 16 and 17 are rather narrow and form the sides of the feeding troughs. -Floor boards 18.and 19 are fixed at their inner ends on the central sill 13 and slope downwardly and outwardly to the side boards 16 and 17 respectively and rest on and are fastened to the outer sills 14 and 15. Suitable end members20 and 21 are provided for the base, which members are fixed to the ends of the boards 16 and 17 outside of the end cross-bars 10 and 12,'and said end members project above the said side boards and are narrower at their tops than the space between such boards. Extending longitudinallyof the device and fixed at their ends to the tops of the end members 2() and 21 are spaced rails 22 and 23,V which rails have outwardly inclined upper faces. The bin or hopper is fixed to and rises from the end members 2O and 21 and rails 22 and 23 and is composed of sheet metal side walls 24 and 25 and end walls 26. A suitable cover 27 is provided for normally closing'the top of the hopper, the bottom of the hopper beingl open and discharging to the base portion and the .troughs thereof. The lower margins of the side walls 24 and 25`are turned outwardly across the tops of the rails 22 and 23 and project beyond the outer faces of said rails to provide inclined Water-sheds 28 and 29.

Hinge rods 30 and 31 are mounted along side the outer faces of the respective rails 22 and 23, near the lower edges thereof and series of feeding doors 32 and 33 are pivotally attached to said rods. The doors 32 and 33 are formed of heavy sheet metal and project at their outerfmargins materially beyond the side boards16- and 17 of the base. Each door preferably is formed with an 11p- The When the doors 'are in closed position their side flanges are substantially in contact successively, but the hinge flanges 36 stop short of the side margins of each door as clearly shown in Fig. 4. Hinge clipsr are .mounted on the outer faces' of the rails 22 and`23, one vat each end and one between' leach pair of successive doors of a series. pThe preferred form of clip, shown in Fig. 6, comprises a body 37 formed with holes 38 vby means of which it may be attached to one of the rails byrmeans of lag screws 39. At its lowervend, each clip is turn-ed outwardly from the rail` and then extends-on an are around a pivot rod 30V or 31, providing an arcuate beaiing portion 40 which terminates against the outer face of the rail. ABetween Y its ends the bearing portion 40 is reduced in width to form a shoulder 41 on each side.

, The reduced portions of the bearings 40 are of adjacent doors while the wider portions arranged between successive hinge flanges 36 including the shoulders 41 overlie said curved hinge flange and preventremoval of the doors from the hinge rods. In the form of clip shown in Fig. 7 the body 37 extends downwardly yand thence outwardly in a curved bearing portion 404 of approximately 360 degrees circumference, which terminates against the outer face of the body of the clip.

In this instance the intermediate portion of the bearing 40 isV of lesswidth than the body of the clip and of less width than its own terminalj portion'thereby providing its shoulders 41V which have the same function as just described.

Lifting lbars 42 and 43 arel arranged lengthwise of each side of the base or trough. The'lifting bars are of angular form vand normally they embrace and rest upon the inner upper corners of the side boards '16 and V17 respectively yand just beneath the respective series of doors 32 and 33. At each end, the Ylifting bars 42 and 43are provided with metal straps 44 attached thereto and i extending inwardly along the inner faces screws` 46 or the like.

of the end members 20 and 21, to which they are pivotally attached by means of lag Either of the doors of a series may be lifted separately by an animal desiring tov feed from the device by inserting his nose beneath the projecting edge of the door, and when the animal withdraws from feeding position the door so lifted will fall by gravity to its normal position upon the edge of the trough shown at the left of Fig. 2. A arrangement serves to protect the contents of the trough from the entrance of dirt or other foreign substances as well as rain or snow and yet per- Vmits easy access for feeding purposes. It

also prevents an animal from getting into the trough7 as he will ordinarily'be able to Vopen only one door at a time, and these doors divide the troughs into feeding spaces because each door is made a proper width for the ordinary feeding space. lVhen it is desired to clean the trough or to gain access thereto for other purposes, the bars 42 vor 43,

or both, may be liftedinanually, thus Vconjunctively raising all the doors of the series Vas indicated at the right in Fig. V2. The

series of doors may be held in this position by engagement of an annular clip 47 fixed midway of the under surface of one of the doors of each series and adapted to engage the outer edge of a lifting bar 42 or 43 when said bar has'ioeen raised through a certain arc. A

It may be desirable at times .to provide agitating devices in the base portion of the device beneath the hopper and I have illustrated such an arrangement in Figures 2, 3 and V5. vvEach agitating device is in this instance, formed of several bars or straps of metal secured together and arranged so as to provide six radiating arms. As here shown, two bars 48 and 49 are arranged end to end and slightly spaced apart, while substantially U-shaped arms 50 and 51 are mounted .on opposite sides of the straight bars 48 and 49 and rigidly secured thereto. The space between the arms may be reamed out to foi-mia central bearing 52 through which a lag screw 53 may be mounted and fitted in the floor of the trough, whereby the agitator is mounted for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane. As many of these agitators may be provided for a trough .Y as are .deemed necessary` and their function is to agitate and cause feed inthe hopper or piled up above the trough to be moved downwardly and .outwardly as the animals move said agitators in the act of feeding.

It may also Vbe desirableV to providersmovable metallic liners for the troughs which may be replacedv from time to time as wear or corrosion impairs their elliciency. Such liners are shown in Fig..2 andeach comprises a body portion 54 resting on the floor boards 18 or 19 of "the respective troughs and preferably extending from end to end thereof. The inner edges of the liners are insertedbeneath the arms of the agitators, which preferably are bent up or cut away at their ends to prevent catching on said liners. wardly near their .outer faces to form inclined portions 55 designed to rest against The liners are bent up-y the fillets 56 which customarily are mounted in the angle between the fioor boards and side boards of the troughs, and thence are extended upwardly at 57 along the inner faces of the side boards. At their top margins the liners preferably are turned inwardly to form horizontal flanges 58 which may be conveniently grasped to facilitate the operation of handling the liners and particularly in removing them from the troughs.

I claim as my invention:

l. In a hog feeder, a base portion formed with a feeding trough, a frame member cxtending along the inner upper port-ion ofv said trough, a series of doors hinged at one end to said frame member and adapted normally to extend across the top and project beyond the outer wall of said trough, an angle-shaped lifting bar adapted to embrace the top of the outer wall of the trough and to extend beneath all of said doors, straps fixed to said lifting bar and having a pivoted connection with the inner faces of the end walls of said trough, and a clip fixed to the lower face of'one of said doors and adapted to engage said lifting bar at times for holding said bar and the entire series of doors in elevated position.

2. In a hog feeder, a feeding trough having a frame member extending along its inner upper portion, a hinge rod carried by said frame member, a series of clips fixed to said frame member and each having an arcuate bearing portion engaging said rod, a series of doors each having a bearing 'ange -pivotally engaging said hinge rod between successive clips, each clip being formed with a shoulder overhanging the end portion of a bearing flange of one or more of said doors to prevent removal thereof from the rod.

3. In a device of the class described, a frame member, a hinge rod carried thereby, al clip fixed to said frame member and -having an arcuate portion engaging said rod, a portion of the bearing of each clip being reduced in width to form a shoulder, and a door having a bearing flange concavo-convex in cross-section and engaging said rod, each end of said bearing flange extending beneath the shouldered portion of one of said clips.

WILLIAM A. MGCOLLOUGH. 

